Photo: ToyotaElectric Range is Only 12.4 Miles...Toyota will be unveiling a plug-in hybrid Prius concept next week at the Frankfurt Motor show, which we wrote about here, but some new details have surfaced: The PHEV Prius will have lithium-ion batteries (finally!) and an electric range of 20 km (12.4 miles), with a top speed in electric mode of 100 kph (62 mph). CO2 emissions should be around 60g/km.Click to see our 2010 Toyota Prius slideshow. Photo: ToyotaBetter Adapted to Europe?The range might seem small, but that depends where you are. Toyota's research shows that in the UK and France, more than 80% of car trips are less than 25 km (16 miles), and in the UK alone that's around 80% that are less than 10 km (6 miles). So over there, the plug-in Prius would spend most of its time in electrical mode, and will even be at an advantage to other plug-ins (like the GM Volt) because its battery pack will be smaller and weight less.

Click to see our 2010 Toyota Prius slideshow. Photo: ToyotaFast ChargingAbout the battery, Toyota says: "it can be recharged much more quickly than the nickel-metal hydride type: the battery in the Prius Plug-in can be fully recharged in one-and-a-half hours from a 230v power supply." Pretty impressive. It's not rare to have a car parked for 1-2 hours during the day, even if we drive a lot.

Where Can I Get One?So far Toyota has only announced a test programme in early 2010. 500 PHEVs are to be leased to people around the world to see how the plug-in hybrids perform in the real world. This should be split this way: 150 Europe, 150 US, and 200 Japan.

If that goes well, hopefully Toyota won't wait too long to produce more.